Wood designated for assignment, Aybar activated

Posted on: April 20, 2011 12:19 am

Edited on: April 20, 2011 12:46 am

By Matt Snyder

In a move that may eventually prove mutually beneficial, the Angels have designated Brandon Wood for assignment, the Angels announced after their victory Tuesday night. In a corresponding move, Erick Aybar was activated from the disabled list.

What that means for Wood is that the Angels have 10 days to trade, release or place Wood on waivers. If they elect to place him on waivers and he clears, he could join a minor-league affiliate of the Angels. Otherwise he's done with the organization.

A fresh franchise may be what Wood needs at this point anyway. For whatever the reason, something's not working for him in the bigs with the Angels.

Wood, 26, had been a highly-touted prospect for years. He was the 2005 Minor League Player of the Year. In 2006 and 2007, he was considered by most to be a top-10 prospect in all of baseball. With good reason, as Wood tore the cover off the ball in the minors. In 130 games at Class A-Advanced in 2005, Wood hit .321 with 43 home runs, 115 RBI, 109 runs and 51 doubles. Beginning in 2007, Wood hit .283 with 77 home runs in 1,288 Triple-A at-bats. But every time he was transitioned to the show, something was left behind. He showed some -- albeit very few and far between -- flashes of power. But that was about it.

As things stood entering Tuesday night, Wood had appeared in 172 games with 493 plate appearances in the majors -- which took place from 2007-2011. In that time, he hit .168 with 11 home runs, 33 RBI and a dreadful .456 OPS. Oh, and the worst part: He struck out 153 times while walking just 13.

He's still only 26, so he probably deserves a shot somewhere ... just don't expect it to be with the Angels. And that's probably best for Wood, too.

Wood designated for assignment, Aybar activated

I'd like to see the Jays scoop him up. They have some excellent coaches who are usually able to get the most out of their players, especially in the hitting dept. It seems to early to give up on Wood, but he's def. on his way if he doesn't figure things out real soon.

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